Time flies, but it's nevertheless difficult to believe that the original Kia c'eed appeared back in 2007. That car was a game changer for the Korean brand, designed and engineered in Europe by Europeans for Europeans.

Ex VW design boss, Peter Schreyer, arrived too late to have any real influence on the car, but you can see his fingerprints all over its successor, especially in the interior with soft touch materials, damped sun visors and subtle red ambient lighting. It's not quite a match for a VW Golf, but it's knocking on the door with an urgency that should make Wolfsburg sit up and take notice. And, in doing so it has overtaken several rivals – the French? – who should be alarmed at how this Korean upstart has forged ahead.

It's a crisp, neat looking hatch with interior accommodation that puts it well in touch with the sectors standard bearers from Ford, VW and GM.

There's generous choice of 1.4- and 1.6-liter gasoline engines – featuring direct injection for the first time – and 1.6 diesels; Kia has also introduced its first dual clutch transmission developed in conjunction with a German supplier. Power output ranges from 98 to 133 bhp, but the chassis is so competent that it is crying out for more horses under the hood to fully exploit its dynamic range.

The Koreans claim the body is 51 percent torsionally stiffer than its predecessor allowing the multi-link rear suspension and MacPherson strut front to do their job more efficiently. Even across the billiard table smooth roads surrounding Lake Geneva, where I am convinced that leaving a pot hole is punishable by public flogging, the cee'd displayed a level of ride comfort and dynamic fluency that should alarm Ford's Focus team, generally acknowledged as this sector's leaders.

But they will be pleased to know that Kia's engineers have tried to be too clever by half and subsequently stumbled; the EPAS has three settings: `Comfort', `Normal' and `Sport'. Like so many of these options today, drivers will settle for one and keep it there, rather than continuously switching between them according to driving conditions. Personally, I'd stick to `Sport' with its meaty feel when pressed hard under cornering and high speed straight line stability. For many `Normal' will be their preferred choice. `Comfort', on the other hand, had all the feedback of stirring a bowl of soggy pasta. There will be those that argue, and simultaneously patronize, female drivers who find low-speed in town driving and parking a physical effort, but we're not talking about Camaro sized tyres here, it's a family hatch.

That aside there's little to criticize the new cee'd for; add in a seven-year, 100,000 mile warranty and there's every good reason to drive past your average European, and some Japanese, OEMs showroom and head for that once funny little Korean brand. They're on the radar and, boy, do they mean business.